Local noir series and luxury French brand call out the beauties
● From the pre-screening of a racy new series set in a family make-up empire to the arrival of a luxe French ethical cosmetics brand, beauty was buzzing on the social scene this week.
First up was the red-carpet launch of Netflix’s newest foray into local drama, Savage Beauty.
With the recent news that it is haemorrhaging subscribers globally and that cost-cutting measures included canning Meghan Markle’s animated offering, Pearl, it’s no surprise that the streaming giant is looking to expand its fortunes elsewhere.
Perhaps a homegrown series with a dark underbelly will snare more Mzansi viewers?
The special viewing took place on Wednesday evening at the Houghton Hotel in Joburg.
Arriving at the five-star establishment’s conference centre, where a red carpet was laid out, I spot a dapper Dumisani Mbebe, who plays the philandering patriarch, before greeting pretty boy Jesse Suntele, who plays one of his two sons.
Next it’s hello to seasoned actress Nthati Moshesh, one of Dumisani’s character’s two wives, who, with her devious ways, is the show’s true star.
Nthati gives me a warm welcome and tells me she took a hands-on approach to the glittering gown she’s turned up in.
“I went to Moosa’s at the [Oriental] Plaza, found the fabric and then they told me to go around the corner to an amazing guy called Jilani, who made my design,” she says.
Nambitha Ben-Mazwi, who also stars in the show — and who can lay claim to now having an impressive six Netflix shows under her belt — tells me her show-stopping lemon gown is thanks to her go-to red-carpet label, Zazi Luxury. Elsewhere I spy Rosemary Zimu, who plays a character hellbent on revenge, and I catch up with funny gal Lesego Tlhabi, who many will know as Coconut Kelz. She tells me she’s expanding her repertoire with her new podcast, Convos and Cocktails, launching on Friday.
I get distracted by the entrance of one of my favs, Rami Chuene, not for what she is wearing but because of the hunky arm candy she arrives with.
The actress, who has been one of the most sought-after in the country since she exited The Queen, introduces me to Themba Manganyi, but is coy as to whether or not the model turned actor is her ... er ... Ben 10.
We are served canapes that are a bit on the bland side (C’mon, The Houghton, you need to up your catering game!) so I am thankful for the popcorn, Smarties and sodas we are handed as we make our way inside to watch the series’ first episode.
Rami steps up as the night’s MC, quipping at one point that the show’s only “grievous mistake is that I’m not in it”.
As for the show? Lots of edge-of-your-seat stuff but a little cliched, and considering it’s set in the beauty biz, the cast’s wardrobe could do with a facelift.
On the other hand, tres chic is the best way of describing the launch of Panier des Sens the following afternoon.
But then you might say I’m a tad partial since the brand named little old moi as one of their two local ambassadors. However, with PR queen Jill Grogor behind the event and catering queen du jour Vicky Crease responsible for the French-inspired nibbles, you can’t go wrong.
It took place at the plush Sandton spa, Leuer, with its leafy one-acre grounds transformed into a pretty Provençal scene with plinths artfully displaying the beauty brand’s organic and vegan soaps, fragrances and creams.
One of the first to arrive was society doyenne Peta Eggierth-Symes with her husband, Peter. Next it’s hello to ex-Goldman Sachs SA’s Colin Coleman, who kindly tells me he reads A-Listers first when he picks up the paper.
On to saying hello to Kerishnie Naiker, who was a Miss SA when the beauty pageant mattered. Remembering her brush with the speed cops during her reign, I ask the pharmacist cum philanthropist when was the last time she got a ticket.
“A week ago,” confesses the health activist. “Some things don’t change — and having a love for highly responsive cars is one of them.”
This was a party of the well-heeled and beautiful — from business mavens like Irene Charnley, Gwen Nkosi and Johanna Mukoki to cover girls like Shashi Naidoo (amped up for the next season of Tropika Island of Treasure), Tansey Coetzee, Kim Jayde and Refilwe Modiselle, who paved the way for albinism long before diversity was in vogue.
I greet Kelly Khumalo, being filmed for the next season of her Showmax reality TV show as she enjoys a hand massage, and meet Dawn McNab, whose fashion brand, Disco Dawn, has a sustainability bent.
When the official proceedings get started, Panier’s Nitsa Comninos-Rose and Terri Mitchell get on stage to tell us all about the brand, which features 100% recycled and recyclable packaging and combines artisanal knowhow with traditional methods.
Then it’s on to myself and fellow eco-warrior Catherine Constantinides to share our stories about how we promote sustainability through our work.
With the name of the French company translating as “basket of the senses”, French sounds wafted through the air thanks to a live band including a French accordionist, and Vicky’s feast included smoked salmon with crème fraiche and capers on bruschetta, zesty lemon chicken skewers, courgette fritters with fresh mint — not forgetting the towering croquembouche that formed part of the decadent dessert display.